Palace Children
by People Person I'm Not
Summary: A story about Gen and Attolia's kids. The POV junps around, but I'll always tell you who's telling the story. T to be safe.
1. Children

**A.N. I, of course, do not own any of these characters except the ones you do not recognize. Please R&R! This is, after all, my first story. Pippin.**

_Eugenides_

Sounis was coming, coming to see my queen and I after sixteen long years. The palace-and the people-had to be cleaned, rooms prepared for Sounis and Helen...the work was long, in-depth. But everything had to be perfect, to prove to Sounis that Attolia, the country he had sworn loyalty to, was put together, not going to fall apart at the visitation of a foreign ruler.

_Sounis_

I stood in front of Gen and Attolia, Helen at my side. Gen was wearing his hook, so he couldn't shake my hand. Instead, he stepped off the dias where the two thrones were and locked me in a crushing embrace.

When Gen let me go I politely greeted Attolia. A sound behind me made me turn. One of the wooden doors at the back of the room was creaking open.

A little head poked in, followed by another. Two children, a boy and a girl, both no more than five, ran into the room and to Gen and Attolia. Gen laughed and picked up the little girl as the boy clung to Attolia. I looked at Gen and raised my eyebrows. He shrugged, which made the girl cling tighter to his neck.

A worried-looking woman rushed into the court. She stopped hurridly in front of Gen and Attolia. "Your Majesties, I am so sorry. You know how hard they can be to control..."

She trailed off as Attolia stepped down in front of her. "It is fine, Zoe. We do know that if Irene and Sophos don't want to do something, or if they want to go somewhere, they will get their way. We don't blame you."

Gen looked sidelong at me, blushing red. "Sophos?" I asked.

"Well, you're Sounis now, so we didn't think you'd mind... And, Sounis, you're one of my best friends. Irene's named for her mother, Sophos for you... Ana for no one..."

To my amusement he trailed off, embarrassed, as Zoe carried the two children out of court.

_Zoe_

To be honest, I was sure Attolia would have my head for allowing the twins to escape into the throne room. When she was _nice _about it, I was suspicious. But then I realized that having children mellowed her. Ana and Irene and Sophos, they changed something in her. Not making her a worse queen, but a better one. her husband may have helped, too.


	2. Ana

_Sounis_

Gen and I sat in a tower looking over the palace. We had managed to leave the train of attendants and guards-Gen calls them lapdogs-behind, at the base.

I looked at my friend. "Children. Which one is the heir?"

"Sophos. Originally it was Ana, but she refused. She hates everything about being a princess. I shouldn't tell anyone this...or even think this...but Ana is my favorite. I taught her how to fight, training with her in the practice courts; how to do things with her left hand, just in case she breaks her right or something; even how to steal. She has a real talent for thievery. Under different circumstances she would have been a perfect Thief of Eddis."

"Why, thank you," said a voice behind us. We both jumped and turned.

"Gods damn it, Ana," Gen swore. "When'd you even come up here?"

"I've been up here, was here before you, and you two didn't notice. You blind or something? You always taught me to pay attention to my surroundings," Ana taunted, moving into the light. My eyes grew huge.

Ana looked just like Gen.

"You must be Sounis," she said, looking at me.

"Uh...yes..."I stuttered. "You looked just like your father."

_Ana_

I scowled at Sounis. I don't care if he's a king (after all, my parents _are_ king and queen of Attolia); I hate everyone saying, all the damned time, how I look like Father. "Yes, I know," I told Sounis. I'm very much like him in temperament, too, but I didn't say _that _out loud.

The thing is, yes, I love my father, yes, I envy that he originally had all this freedom as the Thief of Eddis, but...I want people to see me as _me_, Emiliana, Ana, of Attolia, not just a girl who looks just like her father. I grew up with a strong woman, my own mother, as an example of how we are just as capable of independence.

Sounis looked at me. "You don't want people to generalize about you as someone who's just like your father, do you?"

"Did you just read my mind?"

"No, Gen kicked me."

I snorted.

Father gave me that charismatic grin. I couldn't resist grinning back. Then we heard footsteps behind us. Mother and the queen of Sounis.

"Care to join the rest of the court?" Mother asked. We stood and descended all those stairs to the ground.

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><p><strong>A.N. In case you're wondering, Gen's grin is like Harrison Ford's. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and please, please, please, please, <em>please <em>review. Pippin.**


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